Daily increases have stayed above the two‑standard‑deviation mark for 12 straight sessions, the longest run on record, suggesting that traders are aggressively piling into leveraged bets.
Notably, that positioning is getting expensive. Long-side futures traders have paid roughly $32.9 million in cumulative funding over the past month, nearing the $42 million tab seen around Bitcoin’s March peak and still below the $70 million blow‑off in late 2024.
Elevated funding signals conviction, but it also means a crowded trade that can unwind quickly if prices stall or reverse.
Perpetual volume has tilted even further. Ethereum has just overtaken Bitcoin in volume dominance for the first time since the 2022 cycle low, marking the largest skew toward ETH on record.
The report noted that this shift reflects traders seeking higher beta as Bitcoin cools after a surge to an all-time high earlier this month, a move that pushed its realized capitalization above $1 trillion for the first time before price action settled below the peak.
Bitcoin still accounts for more than 64% of total crypto market value, a concentration that could cap altcoin momentum if BTC weakens.
Glassnode’s Altseason Indicator flipped positive on July 9 and has stayed there, triggered by concurrent inflows to Bitcoin and Ethereum, rising stablecoin supply, and a momentum crossover in aggregate altcoin market cap.
Yet, sector correlations show that most altcoins are moving in lockstep with each other while decoupling from Bitcoin, a pattern that often leaves the complex system vulnerable to fragility.
When leverage is stretched and assets trade as a single block, even modest shocks can cascade through forced liquidations.
The report framed the setup plainly, stating that the altcoin rally is real, but traders buying the upside should be prepared for high incoming volatility leading to significant downside.
